A great trip back in time to the mid 19thc, with two people who were really there and each in their way lived life to the fullest. ( )

This appealing book is one of American publishing's best advertisements of itself. Butt together these two excellent diaries, and what you get is nearly a half-century of interesting observations of the passing scene in the Manhattan of old. The older man, Philip Hone, was a merchant who was briefly mayor; the younger, Geo. Templeton Strong, was an attorney and an amateur musician and musical writer of some note. Hone's voice is elegant and touched with Weltschmerz; Strong's has a little more urgency, with the occasional racist rant and, when recalling his work with the Civil War's medical charity the Sanitary Commission, willing to share a detail or two so disgusting as to disturb even readers who have been exposed to a century fraught with all manner of atrocity horrors. The interstitial contributions by Louis Auchincloss are on target, and the book is delightfully illustrated with period pieces. It's probably not all that usable as a research source, but for reading or browsing, it's a good take. ( )